Ballot fraud retrial begins

Retrial of ex-Troy lawmaker to be shorter, officials say; first trial ended in hung jury

Published 10:38 pm, Sunday, July 8, 2012

TROY — Former City Councilman Michael LoPorto will see a tighter, quicker trial when he goes to court Monday for the second time this year to again face ballot fraud charges.

Jury selection will be held at the Rensselaer County Courthouse in what prosecution and defense anticipate will be a speedier trial. The previous highly publicized trial took nine weeks and ended in a mistrial with a hung jury.

"It's going to be much shorter, two weeks or less. We're not calling all the voters," Special Prosecutor Trey Smith said.

LoPorto is accused of participating in a Democratic scheme to steal the Sept. 15, 2009, Working Families Party primary for City Council by casting forged absentee ballots. The Democrats' council candidates won the primary without the forged ballots.

LoPorto faces 29 felony counts of second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument. A conviction on each charge carries a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.

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The first trial saw LoPorto and Rensselaer County Democratic Elections Commissioner Edward McDonough tried together before acting state Supreme Court Justice George J. Pulver Jr. of Greene County.

"There was a lot of evidence dealing with Ed. It didn't really have anything to do with Mike," said Cheryl Coleman, who replaces Michael Feit as LoPorto's defense counsel.

Smith had the cases severed for separate trials after jurors from the first trial told him there was little evidence showing LoPorto and McDonough were connected in the scheme.

There will be fewer prosecution witnesses this time, and there may be fewer charges.

Smith and Coleman said the number of counts lodged against LoPorto may be reduced Monday. If this occurs, it would be the second time that charges against the ex-councilman have been dropped. Prior to the first trial, Pulver dismissed 13 felony counts of second-degree forgery against LoPorto.

There's no question that LoPorto had the absentee ballots in his possession, which he gave to Sara Couch, a Working Families Party activist, to deliver to the board of elections, Smith said. The forgeries, Smith said, were done by former City Clerk William McInerney.

"The question is showing LoPorto knew they were forged and did he possess them with intent to defraud," Smith said about the key issue in the trial.

Coleman said, "It's going to be very clear how sparse the evidence is."

After the first trial, jurors told Smith that there were too many witnesses dragging out the case. This second time around, the evidence will be presented in a more streamlined form.

Among the witnesses to be called by the prosecution will be five voters instead of about 49 called to testify in the first trial. Also reappearing will be a board of elections worker; Robert Martiniano and Thomas Aldrich, who were Democratic and Working Families Party operatives; and Couch, McInerney and former City Councilman John Brown. There will be no police or experts testifying.

McInerney and Brown have each pleaded guilty in pleas deals for their roles in the ballot fraud scheme. Both await sentencing by Pulver.

LoPorto had wanted to testify at the first trial, but didn't. Coleman said she and her client are discussing what testimony, if any, will be presented at the trial.

"We're keeping our options open," Coleman said.

LoPorto's second trial will be watched carefully by McDonough, former City Council President Clement Campana and City Councilman Gary Galuski. The three are awaiting trial for their alleged roles in the ballot fraud plot, but do not yet have court dates.